Don't hold your breath for Russian shale
The Bazhenov deposit holds a lot of oil, but a repeat of the American shale bonanza is by no means imminent
Russia's renewed efforts to stimulate a shale energy revolution have been dismissed by some as a "science project", despite the involvement of Gazprom, the state-controlled behemoth. Gazprom Neft, the company's oil division, unveiled an ambitious drilling programme in late June, after announcing it is ready to move into the next phase of development of unconventional oil reserves in the Bazhenov play in Western Siberia, which is located below conventional sand-stone reservoirs. The company's target is to produce 73m barrels a year (200,000 barrels a day) of light oil from Bazhenov by the end of 2025. But some analysts are less than impressed. They say Gazprom Neft's efforts have been limited
Also in this section
26 April 2024
While the US has been breaking records for its premium grade crude, there are doubts over whether you can have too much of a good thing
26 April 2024
Slowing demand growth and capacity expansions will squeeze refiners in coming years
25 April 2024
Some companies with assets in Israel have turned towards Egypt as tensions escalate, but others are holding firm despite rising tensions
24 April 2024
But even planned exploration activity is unlikely to reverse declining output from mature fields